The Coming of Age of Elizabeth Bennet
by Caitlin Williams
Genres: Classical Rewrite, Historical Fiction, Romance
Release Date: June 6, 2016
Pages: 502
Purchase from: Amazon
My Rating: ★★★★★
The very worst has happened. Mr Bennet has died, leaving his wife and five young daughters bereft. The family estate, Longbourn, is now lost, entailed away and fifteen-year-old Elizabeth Bennet is to go two hundred miles away to live with strangers. George Darcy, repaying a debt of gratitude, has offered to take her to Pemberley, to live under the mantle of his care and be raised alongside his own daughter, Georgiana.
But on the day she is to leave Longbourn forever, young Elizabeth, grieving and confused, runs off into the Hertfordshire countryside. Fitzwilliam Darcy gives chase, telling his father he will have her back in an hour or two. Luck and fate, however, are not on his side and capturing Elizabeth Bennet turns out not only to be more difficult than he could ever have imagined, but events will conspire to turn her little adventure into his worst nightmare.
The prideful man and the girl prejudiced against him, meet much earlier in this rethinking of Jane Austen’s masterpiece. Elizabeth grows up under the ever-watchful eye of Mr Darcy, from fifteen to twenty one. She errs and falters, there are stumbles and trips, but could this ‘disobedient little hellion’ one day become mistress of Pemberley and the keeper of his heart?
Review
The Coming of Age of Elizabeth Bennet (TCoAoEB) was a fantastic tale of second chances. Despite being forced into an extremely young marriage, Elizabeth does not lose her sense of self. She manages to remain true to her character, undeterred by every inducement to do otherwise.
I very much enjoyed when she started to come into her own and take charge. Ms. Williams did a great job of meshing the Elizabeth she created with the Elizabeth of Pride and Prejudice.
As seems to be a pattern for me lately, I noticed some errors, but not enough to knock off a star. I would greatly welcome a sequel, or even just an epilogue to know how everyone gets on after TCoAoEB ends.
About the Author
Caitlin Williams lives in Kent, England, with her family.
She fell in love with all things Regency as a teenager, but particularly admires the work of Jane Austen and the way she masterfully combines humour and romance, while weaving them through such wonderful stories and characters.
Her debut novel, Ardently, was written as a hobby, usually with her laptop balanced on the kitchen worktop, typing with one hand, a glass of wine in the other, while she also attempted to cook dinner and keep her children from killing each other.
She has since written the award-wining The Coming of Age of Elizabeth Bennet and When We Are Married. Her latest novel is The Events at Branxbourne. They are all Austenesque novels set in the Pride and Prejudice universe.
Author links: Goodreads | Amazon Author Page
Disclaimer: This review is based on an eBook I borrowed from Amazon on February 4, 2019 as part of the Kindle Unlimited program.
